This application claims priority to Japanese Patent Application No. JP 2000-315966, and the disclosure of that application is herein incorporated by reference to the extent permitted by law.
This invention relates to an apparatus and a method for producing a print in which a holographic stereogram image or a hologram image is exposed and recorded, an apparatus and a method for cutting out a holographic stereogram image or a hologram image, an apparatus and a method for laminating with a protecting film a hologram recording medium on which a holographic stereogram image or a hologram image is exposed and recorded to, and an apparatus and a method for sequentially exposing and recording plural holographic stereogram images or plural hologram images onto a hologram recording medium.
Generally, a holographic stereogram is e.g. produced with a plurality of images obtained by sequentially capturing an object image from different observation points as original images and sequentially exposing and recording each of the original images as a stripe-shaped or a dot-shaped element hologram onto a single hologram recording medium.
For example, a holographic stereogram is produced by means of a holographic stereogram producing apparatus 200 as shown in FIG. 11A. The holographic stereogram producing apparatus 200 is provided with a laser light source 201 which emits a laser light L201 in which wavelength is formed by a single mode having optimum interference characteristic, a half mirror 202 which divides the emitted laser light L201 into an object light L202 and a reference light L203, optical elements 203, 204, 205, 206, 207 and a display apparatus 208 which constitute an optical system of object light L202, optical elements 209, 210, and 211 which constitute an optical system of the reference light L203, and an electromotive stage 213 which retains or supplies a record medium designed for hologram 212 onto which the object light L202 and the reference light L203 are converged.
The optical system including the object light L202 is constituted by a total reflection mirror 203, a first cylindrical lens 204 which has the object light diffused in one-dimensional direction, a collimator lens 205 which converts the diffused object light L202 into a parallel light, a projection lens 206, and a second cylindrical lens 207 which introduces the object light L202 onto a recording medium 212 designed for hologram 212 in an exposing and recording section P201, which are arranged in order from a light incident side along an optical axle. A liquid crystal panel of transmission type, which is arranged between the collimator lens 205 and the projection lens 206, constitutes the display apparatus 208. The display apparatus 208 displays image data output from an image processing section not shown in the figure.
The optical system including the reference light L203 is constituted by a cylindrical lens 209 which has the object light diffused in one-dimensional direction, a collimator lens 210 which converts the diffused object light L203 into a parallel light, and a total reflection mirror 211 which reflects the object light L202 to introduce the reflected one to a hologram recording medium 212 in an exposing and recording section P201, which are arranged in order from a light incident side along an optical axle.
A record medium designed for hologram 212 is e.g. made of a photosensitive film and retained by an electromotive stage 213 as shown in FIG. 11B. The medium 212 designed for hologram is intermittently run in a direction of an arrow aa by drive of this electromotive stage 213.
As shown in FIG. 11A, the laser light L201 is emitted from laser light source 201 and incident on the half mirror 202. The laser light L201 is divided into the object light L202 and the reference light L203 by this half mirror 202.
The object light L202 is incident on the display apparatus 208 after traveling by way of the cylindrical lens 204 and collimator lens 205. The image is modulated, depending on an element image displayed when transmitted through this display apparatus 208. The modulated object light L202 is incident on the record medium designed for hologram 212 arranged at the exposing and recording section P201 after traveling by way of the projection lens 206 and the cylindrical lens 207. The reference light L203 is incident on the recording medium 212 designed for hologram arranged at the exposing and recording section P201, after traveling by way of an optical system of the cylindrical lens 209, the collimator lens 210 and the total reflection mirror 211.
Thus, interference fringes produced by interference between the reference light L203 and the object light L202 modulated by an image displayed by display apparatus 208 is sequentially exposed and recorded onto the hologram recording medium 212 as an element hologram in a striped or dotted manner.
The holographic stereogram produced by such holographic stereogram producing apparatus 200 is identified, with aggregate of pieces of the reference image information regarded as parts of each of element holograms, as two-dimensional image by an observer when the observer views the holographic stereogram with one of observer""s both eyes from a certain position. The holographic stereogram produced thereby is identified, which is regarded aggregate of pieces of image information recorded as a part of each element hologram as the other two-dimensional image when an observer views the holographic stereogram with the other one of the observer""s both eyes from any position except for the certain position. Thus, the holographic stereogram is identified, regarding an exposed and recorded image as a three-dimensional image owing to parallax effect between right and left eyes when an observer views the holographic stereogram with both his or her eyes.
An application as to such a holographic stereogram is e.g. stated in xe2x80x9cInstant holographic portrait printing systemxe2x80x9d by Akira Shirakura, Nobuhiro Kihara and Shigeyuki Baba, in Proceeding of SPIE, Vol. 3293, pp. 246-253, January 1998 and xe2x80x9cHigh speed hologram portrait print systemxe2x80x9d by Kihara, Shirakura, and Baba disclosed in xe2x80x9cThree-dimensional Image Conference 1998xe2x80x9d, July, 1998 and so on. As stated therein, there is a printer system or the like constituted by combination of a imaging apparatus/image capture apparatus which captures an image of an object and produces a parallax image sequence and a printing apparatus such as the above-mentioned holographic stereogram producing apparatus 200 which outputs a holographic stereogram or a hologram as a print. Such a system can provide a service that encompasses from capturing an image of an object to printing the captured result at the same location.
By the way, the above-mentioned holographic stereogram producing apparatus 200 often uses a strip-like photosensitive film as the record medium 212 designed for hologram. In this case, usually, when a single holographic stereogram is exposed and recorded onto the image record medium 212 by the holographic stereogram producing apparatus 200, the single one is cut out as a single unit and a predetermined fixation process is applied to the cut out stereogram.
However, such a method can not be efficiently performed when a print of a holographic stereogram image or a hologram image is mass-produced, thus constituting a barrier preventing the realization of a system that could meet such a demand for mass-production.
Further, when such a method is applied to a system for providing a service encompassing from imaging/image-capturing an object to printing operation of the captured result at a same location, the strip-like recording medium 212 designed for hologram 212 may have to be conveyed forwardly, bringing about more non-exposed sections in the recording medium 212 designed for the hologram 212, with a result that production yield is low.
This invention is devised in view of such a fact. It is desirable that a print producing apparatus and method are provided, in which waste of non-exposed portion in a record medium designed for a hologram can be minimized and a holographic stereogram image or a hologram image can be efficiently produced as a print.
Further, it is desirable to provide an image cutting out apparatus and an image cutting out method capable of efficiently cutting out a holographic stereogram image or a hologram image from a recoding medium designed for hologram in order to minimize waste of non-exposed section in a hologram recording medium and efficiently produce the holographic stereogram image or the hologram image as a print.
Further, it is desirable to provide an apparatus and a method capable of efficiently laminating a piece of hologram recording medium in which a holographic stereogram image or a hologram image is exposed and recorded with a protecting film in order to minimize waste of a non-exposed portion in a hologram recording medium and efficiently produce the holographic stereogram image or the hologram image as a print.
Further, it is desirable to provide an apparatus and a method for recording an image capable of sequentially exposing and recording plural holographic stereogram images or hologram images onto a hologram recording medium, eliminating wastage of a non-exposed portion in the hologram recording medium, resulting in efficiently producing a holographic stereogram image or a hologram image as a print.
A desirable print producing apparatus of one preferred embodiment of the present invention is characterizing by the following. The print producing apparatus for producing a print in which a holographic stereogram image or a hologram image is exposed and recorded includes: a recording medium conveying member for intermittently conveying a strip-like hologram recording medium in which plural holographic stereogram images or hologram images are exposed and recorded, a cutting out member for cutting out a portion having a predetermined size at least including the holographic stereogram images or the hologram images exposed and recorded from the hologram recording medium intermittently conveyed by the recording medium conveying member, a positioning member for deciding a position where a piece of the recoding medium designed for the hologram MD is cut out by the cutting out member, a film retaining member for retaining plural pieces of protecting (plastic) film for protecting both sides of the piece of the hologram recording medium MD, a film supplying member for supplying a single piece from among the plural pieces of the protecting (plastic) film retained by the film retaining member while the single piece is folded in two along a folding line, a film opening and closing member for opening and closing the single piece of the protecting plastic film folded in two by the film supplying member fed to the predetermined position and heating and pressure-bonding member for heating and pressure-bonding the piece thereof folded into an original status manner along the folding line by the film opening and closing member such that the hologram recording medium is at least sandwiched by the protecting film.
The print producing apparatus of one preferred embodiment like this cuts out a piece of hologram recording medium by means of a cutting out member, sandwiches the piece with a protecting film, and laminates the sandwiched piece by means of a heating and pressure-bonding member.
A desirable print producing method of one preferred embodiment of the present invention is characterized by the following. The method is directed to a print producing method for producing a print in which a holographic stereogram image or a hologram image is exposed and recorded including the following steps of: intermittently conveying a strip-like hologram recording medium in which plural holographic stereogram images or hologram images are exposed and recorded, positioning and cutting out a portion/region/portion having a predetermined size and including the holographic stereogram images or the hologram images exposed and recorded from the hologram recording medium intermittently conveyed, supplying a single piece from among the plural pieces of the protecting plastic film for both protecting sides while the single piece is folded in two, opening and closing the single piece of the protecting plastic film folded in two by the film supplying means fed to the predetermined position, and heating and pressure-bonding the piece thereof folded into an original status along the folding line by the film opening and closing means in such a way that at least the hologram recording medium is sandwiched by the protecting (plastic) film.
The print producing method of such preferred embodiment cuts out a piece of hologram recording medium by means of a cutting out member, sandwiches the piece with a protecting plastic film, and laminates the sandwiched piece by means of a heating and pressure-bonding member.
In addition, a desired image cutting out apparatus of one preferred embodiment of the present invention is characterized by the following. The apparatus is directed to an image cutting out apparatus including: a recording medium conveying member for intermittently conveying a strip-like hologram recording medium in which plural holographic holographic stereogram images or hologram images are exposed and recorded, a cutting out member for cutting out a portion having a predetermined size including at least the plural holographic holographic stereogram images or hologram images exposed and recorded from the hologram recording medium intermittently fed by the recording medium conveying member, and a positioning member for deciding a position where a piece of the recording medium is cut out from the hologram recording medium by the cutting out member.
Such cutting out apparatus of the preferred embodiment of the present invention positions an region having a predetermined area including at least the hologram stereogram image or the hologram image by means of the positioning member and cuts out the concerning region as a piece of hologram recording medium by means of the cutting out member.
Further, a desired method of cutting out an image of one preferred embodiment of the present invention is characterizing by the following. The method is directed to an image cutting out method including the steps of intermittently conveying a strip-like hologram recording medium in which plural holographic stereogram images or hologram images are exposed and recorded, and positioning and cutting out a region having a predetermined size and including at least the holographic stereogram images or hologram images exposed and recorded from the hologram recording medium to be intermittently conveyed.
Further, a desired laminating apparatus of one preferred embodiment of the present invention is characterizing by including the steps of positioning a predetermined area including at least the hologram stereogram image or the hologram image by means of the positioning member and cuts out the region as a piece of hologram recording medium by means of the cutting out member.
A laminating apparatus of one preferred embodiment of the present invention to attain the above-mentioned aim is characterized by the following. The laminating apparatus for laminating a piece of a hologram recording medium in which a holographic stereogram image or a hologram image is exposed and recorded with a protecting film for protecting both sides of the film includes film retaining member for retaining plural pieces of the protecting film, film supplying member for supplying one by one and folded in two the plural pieces of the protecting film retained by the film retaining member to a predetermined position of the film, film opening and closing member for opening, along a folding line, a single sheet of the protecting film provided at the predetermined position folded in two along a folding line, and heat and pressure-bonding member for heating and pressure-bonding the protecting film folded along the folding line into an original status by the film opening and closing member in such a way that at least the hologram recording medium is sandwiched by the protecting film.
The laminating apparatus of one preferred embodiment like this sandwiches the piece with a protecting film, and laminates the sandwiched piece by means of a heating and pressure-bonding member.
A desired laminating method of one preferred embodiment of the present invention is characterized by the following. The laminating method for laminating a piece of a hologram recording medium in which a holographic stereogram image or a hologram image is exposed and recorded with a protecting film for protecting both sides of the film includes the following steps of: supplying the plural pieces of the protecting film retained by the film retaining member one by one and folded in two to a predetermined position of the protecting film, opening a single sheet of the protecting film one by one provided at the predetermined position in folding-in-one manner of the film along a folding line and folding the single sheet thereof, and heating and pressure-bonding the protecting film folded along the folding line into an original status by the film opening and closing member in such a way that the hologram recording medium is at least sandwiched by the protecting film.
Such laminating method of the preferred embodiment of the present invention sandwiches the piece with a protecting film, and laminates the sandwiched piece by means of a heating and pressure-bonding member. Further, an image recording apparatus according to a first preferred embodiment of the present invention is characterized by the image recording apparatus for sequentially exposing and recording plural holographic stereogram images or hologram images against a strip-like film like hologram recording medium, including a recording member for exposing and recording the recording plural holographic stereogram images or hologram images onto the hologram recording medium, and exposing and recording an identification image at a forward or backward portion of each of holographic stereogram images or each of hologram images in a longitudinal direction of the hologram recording medium.
Such image recording apparatus according to the first preferred embodiment of the present invention exposes and records an identification image at a forward or backward portion of each of holographic stereogram images or each of hologram images in a longitudinal direction of the hologram recording medium, at the event of exposing and recording a holographic stereogram image or a hologram image against the hologram recording medium by a recording means.
Further, an image recording method according to the first preferred embodiment of the present invention for sequentially exposing and recording plural holographic stereogram images or hologram images es the steps of: exposing and recording the recording plural holographic stereogram images or hologram images onto the hologram recording medium, and exposing and recording an identification image at a forward or backward portion of each of holographic stereogram images or each of hologram images in a longitudinal direction of the hologram recording medium.
Such image recording method according to the first preferred embodiment of the present invention exposes and records an identification image at a forward or backward portion of each of holographic stereogram images or each of hologram images in a longitudinal direction of the hologram recording medium, at the event of exposing and recording a holographic stereogram image or a hologram image against the hologram recording medium by a recording means.